New Huber Testpieces in Alps

By Dougald MacDonald

Thomas Huber on Firewall

Alexander and Thomas Huber have created two more alpine testpieces on the limestone North Face of the Feuerhorn in the Bavarian Alps. Firewall (13 pitches, 8b/5.13d) has four pitches of 5.12 and a wildly overhanging crux wall, capped by two 5.13d pitches — the 11th and 12th. The brothers redpointed the route on August 6. Two weeks later, they redpointed Monstermagnet, a 12-pitch route, also very overhanging, with two 5.12d pitches, three other 5.12 pitches and some healthy runouts between protection.

Both of the new climbs lie to the right of End of Silence, the wall’s hardest route. (Firewall shares the first five pitches.) Thomas Huber first redpointed the 11-pitch End of Silence in 1994, with three pitches of 5.13, including one 5.13d. That route got its fourth and fifth free ascents earlier this summer, when Mauro “Bubu” Bole and Harry Berger each redpointed the climb.

2 pitches 7c, 1 pitch 7b, 2 pitches 7a and easier. Demanding and steep face climbing on highest quality alpine limestone. Besides the in situ pitons and bolts you need a set of nuts and Camalots 0.5 to 2 for further protection. There are some long run-outs between the protection points. FRA (1st Redpoint Ascent): Alexander and Thomas Huber, August 20th 2003